ACR ‘extremely disappointed’ after legislature overrides governor’s veto of ‘harmful’ scope-of-practice bills
The American College of Radiology said Thursday it is “extremely disappointed” after the Oklahoma state legislature recently overrode two “harmful” scope-of-practice bills local radiologists had fought against.
Republican Gov. J. Kevin Stitt on May 13 announced he was quashing the two measures, which give greater practice authority to nurse practitioners, certified anesthetists and midwives, along with physician assistants. In his vetomessages, Stitt said he’d support the policies if they were limited to primary care but believes, as written, they are a “step too far.”
However, state lawmakers have now undone his actions on House Bills 2298 and 2584. The moves come with local legislators also recently overriding the governor’s veto of another bill, requiring health insurers to coverage follow-up breast imaging exams such as ultrasounds and MRIs.
“This moment took years of hard work and relentless advocacy. Thank you to the legislative team, the [advanced practice registered nurse] coalition and every nurse practitioner who kept pushing forward,” the Association of Oklahoma Nurse Practitioners said in a social media post May 30.
HB 2298 will allow certified NPs, clinical nurse specialists and midwives who have completed a minimum of 6,240 of physician-supervised practice to independently prescribe medications. Meanwhile, HB 2584 would do the same for physician assistants who log the same number of hours, allowing them to prescribe certain medications. Both bills are aimed at improving healthcare access and flexibility while maintaining patient safety standards, according to summaries provided by BillTrack50.com. Changes are set to take effect Nov. 1.
But ACR and the Oklahoma State Radiological Society contend the policy updates could put patients in danger. They voiced their concern to Gov. Stitt in a letter May 23, “strongly” urging him to veto both proposals.
“ACR values the commitment of nonphysician practitioners to the team-based model of care and greatly respects the contributions NPPs make to the healthcare team,” Cynthia Moran, the American College of Radiology’s executive VP of government relations, economics, and health policy, wrote last month. “However, we do not believe their education and training adequately prepare them to oversee patient care independently. ACR is deeply concerned that HB 2584 and HB 2298 eliminate physician-led teams and, as written, would allow advanced practice registered nurses and physician assistants full independent practice authority.”
Sooner State lawmakers also proposed a similar NP-related measure in 2024, which Gov. Stitt rejected. The OSRS scored a $20,000 grant from ACR in 2023 to aid in its fight against scope creep.
“While the American College of Radiology is extremely disappointed with the actions of the Oklahoma state legislature, the college commends Gov. Stitt for his veto of the bills,” ACR said in a news update published June 5.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.